Truckee cultural district

A High Sierra District, Truckee boasts world-class scenery and a rugged high alpine location that catalyzes and inspires art and culture. Truckee’s rich history includes: the Transcontinental Railroad, the infamous Donner Party, Charlie Chaplin performances, and the 1960 Winter Olympics. The main features are Truckee’s historic downtown which is home to numerous galleries, workshops and events and Donner Summit which provides numerous trails and vista points highlighting our tremendous historic and cultural heritage.

Truckee’s rich history includes the Transcontinental Railroad, the infamous Donner Party, Charlie Chaplin performances, and the 1960 Winter Olympics.

The Truckee Cultural District, located in the High Sierra, is well-known for its forests, waterways, and spectacular mountain views, which attract visitors and residents alike. These assets offer diverse and readily-accessible outdoor recreation and open space opportunities for which Truckee is famous. This natural setting stimulates an outdoor adventure culture and provides compelling opportunities to interpret, capture and inspire artistic and cultural creation.

In addition to the captivating outdoors, Truckee is a designated Historic District and presents a rich combination of historic assets that highlight Truckee as the gateway to westward expansion and the site of the ill-fated Donner Party. These include numerous historic buildings which give Truckee a unique sense of place—including an historic jail museum, Donner Memorial State Park and Museum, interpretive trails, railroad museum, and the Pioneer Monument.

Truckee has created a new 3,000 square foot makerspace that offers the community a place to learn, build and practice a wide variety of art and creative skills.

Over the years Truckee has attracted and grown a vibrant, entrepreneurial, artistic community which has birthed over a dozen art galleries and exhibit spaces, created continuous year-round artistic and cultural events, inspired numerous public art pieces across Town, and most recently created a new 3,000 square foot makerspace that offers the community a place to learn, build and practice a wide variety of art and creative skills.

Nevada County Arts Council, by resolution of Nevada County Board of Supervisors, is State-Local Partner with California Arts Council. As such, we facilitate collaborative efforts that promote and sustain the visual, literary and performing arts of Nevada County in order to advance the cultural, social and economic life of our community. We are a 501c3 not-for-profit organization and your contributions are tax-deductible by law. Our Employment Identification Number (EIN) is 27-0314493.